THE Proteas Women have had only two days to prepare for the one-off Test match starting today against England, having completed the ODI series earlier this week.
The turnaround has been quick for a team who barely play Test cricket, but South African captain Laura Wolvaardt believes that each player should carve out a basic individual plan for the four-day encounter at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein (10am start).
The 25-year-old right-handed batter admitted that the preparation time has been too short for them to get properly set for the Test.
“Tough, especially only having two days since the last ODI. Pretty quick to turn around, and you don’t really want to be training in the middle of the T20 series for the Test match. We left it for right before the Test,” Wolvaardt told the media yesterday.
“Balls that I was cover-driving a week ago, now I leave, which has been a bit tricky in the nets. It’s more of a mental thing.
“There’s only so much technical stuff in two days, but I think it’s for each player to just try to make a basic game-plan with the bat... is probably important.”
Both nations captains, Laura Wolvaardt and Heather Knight participated in a symbolic photoshoot ahead of their historic one-off Test Match in Bloemfontein, the first women’s Test in South Africa since 2002. 🏏🏟️
Set in a classroom with the theme "Student of the Game," the shoot… pic.twitter.com/GhGSGjU1Tj
Despite those challenges, Wolvaardt and her troops are still excited to don the whites again and compete in the long-format arena.
“Definitely excited. I don’t know if we have one next year, though, which is a bit sad. I actually love Test cricket. I think it’s the purest form of the game, and to be able to play it is always such an awesome opportunity,” she said.
“Definitely going to enjoy every second of the game starting tomorrow, and I’d love to have more of it on the calendar – but unfortunately, we don’t get to play that often.
“(Coach Mandla Mashimbyi) did a bit of a presentation for us yesterday just on red-ball cricket, and a lot of the stuff he was saying sounds like I definitely want to play more of the format.
Test Match Ready😎
— Proteas Women (@ProteasWomenCSA) December 14, 2024
Both captains donned their all -white kits for the trophy photoshoot ahead of tomorrow’s once-off test match.🏆🏏
Taking it back to the oldest format of the game🇿🇦vs🏴#AlwaysRising #WozaNawe #BePartOfIt #SAvENG pic.twitter.com/Sylx1lNMRe
“I haven’t played that much of it... I’ve only played the only three Test matches in my career. The one I played in India and spent some time at the crease, it was really awesome to be out there and to get in a good position.
“I feel like you have to be technically sound to last a long time in Test cricket, so it really tests you for long periods of time. It tests your all-round skill as a cricketer, which is pretty cool.”
Proteas Women Squad
Laura Wolvaardt (captain), Anneke Bosch, Tazmin Brits, Nadine de Klerk, Annerie Dercksen, Mieke de Ridder, Lara Goodall, Ayanda Hlubi, Sinalo Jafta, Marizanne Kapp, Masabata Klaas, Suné Luus, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune, Chloe Tryon.